William m



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W. M. WALSH.

UOFFIN.

No. 318,837. Patented May 26, 1885.

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N. PETERS Pholoifihognnhor. wmuin tm. 0'0.

lhvrrnn STnTns' PATENT @Trrcn'o V \VILLIAM M. \VALSH, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR- OF ONE-HALF TO W'ILLIAM KE-HRER, OF SAME PLACE.

COFFIN.

fiPECEEICATION forming part of Letters Patent 1 lo.318,887, dated May 25, 1885.

Application filed January 15. 1885.

T0 aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WILLIAM M. Russia, of Philadelphia, in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania,haveinvented a new and useful Terra-Gotta Ooffin-Box or Burial-Case; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,making part of this application.

Previous to my invention the more common practice has been to inclose the casket or cofrin usually employed for burial purposes within a simple box of wood, although other materials have been sometimes employed as an exterior or enveloping case, and a coffincase or burial-casket composed itself of terracottahas been suggested and patented for the purpose of greater preservation of theinterred body.

My invention hasfor its main endsand objects to provide for general use (in the different qualities required, according to the pecuniary capacity of the purchaser) cases or boxes within which ordinary coffins and their contents can be hermetically scaled up, and. which, while comparatively imperishable, can be readily and cheaply manufactured in various sizes, will not be too heavy to permit handling about as conveniently as the common boxes now in use for enveloping OOffllJS and their contents, will not be liable, though composed of frangible material, to get broken under any usual conditions of handling and transportation, and shall, by reason of the presence of suitable handles or lifter devices, be rendered easy of carriage and management without any injurious strain on the frangible material composing the receptacle.

To these main ends and obj ects my invention may be said to consist in the novel construe tion of a terracotta coffin (or casket) receptacle which will be hereinafter fully described, and the novel features of which will be particularly pointed out and defined in the claims of this specification.

To enable those skilled in the art to which my invention relates to make and use the latter,l will now proceed to morefully describe it, referring by letters to the accompanying drawings, which form part of this specification,

(No model.)

and in which I have shown my invention carried out in the best form now known to me and as I propose to practice it.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of one of my coffincases or terracotta boxes in a closed or sealed condition. Fig. 2 is a vertical cross-section at the lineman of Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is a detail partial horizontal section on an enlarged scale at y y of Fig. 2.

In the several figures the same part will be found designated by the same letter of reference.

A is the body or boX portion of the case, and B the lid, each of which is manufactured of terracotta by the usual processes, and either the interior or exterior, or both, surfaces of which box portion and lid are glazed or vitrified, with the exception of the top edge of the portion A and so much of the inner surface of the lid 13 as is designed to come into con tact with said top edge of A. The object of always leaving unglazed these portions is that they may be perfectly cemented together in the operation of closing up the case for interment of its contents, in order that the case may thus be hermetically sealed.

0 O are two (more or less) metallic hoops, preferably iron, which surround the body portion A of the case exterior-1y, and which are for the purpose of re-enforcing or strengthening the portion A in order that it may be made much lighterz'. 6., of much less material-than could be used were only the terracotta relied on to withstand all the torsional strain and sudden shocks to which the case may possibly be subjected in transportation and handling.

To render the action of the re-enforcing hoops or bands 0 0 more effectual, they may be heated immediately before placing them around the case, so that they will shrink on, thus binding the case more securely.

D D are metallic bands to co-operate with another pair of somewhat similar devices, E E, in a manner to be presently explained, for the purpose of holding the lid B and the box portion A securely together, and at the same time strengthening or re-enforcing the entire case, when closed up, transversely. As clearly shown, each of the metallic bands D extend up each side of the box portion Ato an extent preferably equal to about two-thirds of the height of said side, and each end of each band D has a laterally-projecting end portion, (1, that is perforated for the accommodation of a short bolt, such as seen at e, which, together with its nut f, is used to draw together and securely unite said portion d of the band D, and a similar part, 9, formed on each end of each of the bands E, and similarly perforated for the accommodation of said bolt. Preferably each of the bands D has formed in each of its leg-like portions a recess, as at i, (see Fig. 2,) to accommodate the lower one of the bands 0, while in like manner each of the leglike portions of the bands E is recessed to accommodate the upper one of the longitudinal bands 0.

By reference to Fig. 3 it will be clearly seen that the size of the head 6 of each bolt 6 is such, and the location of the hole in the part d of each band D is such, that when in place one side of the head e of each bolt comes parallel with the leg-like part of D, and so near to it that the bolt 6 cannot turn round in its hole, by which arrangement the nut f (which is made enough smaller than the head 6 to clear the leg-like part of the lid-baud E while turning on the bolt 6) may be readily turned by a wrench on the threaded portion of e to draw the portions 02 and 9 together, and force each pair of bands or straps D and E snugly home to their bearings for the double purpose of securely clamping on the lid B and re-enforcing the closed terra-cotta case or receptacle. Of course other modes of fastening together the adjacent ends of the pairs of bands D and E may be adopted.

For the sake of convenience in handling the case, especially when lowering it into a grave in the operation'of interment, I have provided the upper one of the longitudinal metallic bands 0 at either side of the case with two (more or less) handles or hand-rings, m m. These devices may be made as shown, or they may be of any other desired construction, and, if desired, similar devices may be applied to either the lower one of the bands 0, or to the bands D, or to both. Under any construction and arrangement of the hand-rings or handles, combined with any one or more of the metallic devices of the case, the latter may at any time or under any circumstances be lifted or carried without any such strain on the frangible material composing the case as would be liable to fracture it were hand-rings or any handle-like devices applied or secured directly to the terra-cotta material. It will be understood, of course, that in practicing my invenmanufacturer may dictate will be expedient.

In the manufacture of my improved cases the common brown glazed surface seen on the exterior of and the material used for ordinary earthenware drain-pipes, may be adopted for a cheap article, while for a more expensive sample of my invention the finer grades of compounds coming under the generic head of terra-cotta may be employed, presenting the appearance and conditions of porcelain wares. In all cases, however,

whether the manufacture be in the lower or higher grades of terracotta ware, care should be taken to avoid any vitrification or glazing of either the-top edge of the body A or that portion of the surface of lid B designed to come in contact with said top edge, because I So consider it quite important, for sanitary reasons, that these portions should present the best possible conditions for hermetically sealing the joint between the lid B and the body A. In sealing the joint between these parts any of the most approved materials for and processes of effecting a perfect and durable cementation of the parts together may be adopted.

Having now so tion that those skilled in the art to which it relates can fully understand and practice it, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-.

fully explained my inveno 1. A terra-cotta' case or box adapted to the 5 reception of the ordinary coffin or burial casket, and provided, as shown,with longitudinally-arranged metallic strengthening bands or hoops O 0, all substantially as and for the purposes described.

2 A terra-cotta box or case adapted to the reception of a burial casket or coffin, and having its body portion and lid glazed or vitrified on either their interior or exterior surfaces, or both, with the exception, however, of the upper edge of the body portion A and that portion of the lowermost or inner surface of the lid B which comes directly opposite to the edge of said body portion, in order that a perfect cementation of the body portion and lid of the case may be effected, all as hereinbefore set forth.

3. In combination with the body or box portion A and the lid 13 of a terracotta case, longitudinal metallic hoops or bands 0 G, transversely arranged, clamping or securing bands D D and E E, and means for securing together the adjacent ends of the said transversely-arranged bands, all substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore set forth.

4. In combination with a terra-cotta box or case provided with metallic strengthening and clamping devices substantially suchas specified, a series of handle-like devices applied to some one or more of the said metallic devices, all substantially in the manner and for the purposes hereinbefore explained.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my 1 hand this 29th day of December, 1884.

\VILLIAM M. WALSH.

In presence of F. P. KELRER, WM. R. NlonoLson.

IIO 

